Legislature(2009 - 2010)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
02/17/2010 08:00 AM Senate EDUCATION
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB213 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | SB 213 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 213-FUNDING FOR SCHOOL MEALS
8:04:35 AM
CO-CHAIR THOMAS announced consideration of SB 213.
CO-CHAIR MEYER moved to adopt the proposed committee substitute
(CS) to SB 213, labeled 26-LS1301\E, as the working document of
the committee. There being no objection, version E was before
the committee.
8:05:47 AM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI thanked the Alaska Food Coalition, the
Alaska School Nutrition Association, and the Food Bank of Alaska
for asking him to sponsor this legislation and working closely
with him on it. He said this bill will provide a state match for
schools participating in the federal free and reduced-price
school breakfast and lunch programs in order to encourage more
schools to provide nutritious meals for under-privileged
children and allow schools that already do so to improve their
programs. Under CSSB 213, he said, the state will provide a
match of $.35 for every free and reduced-price breakfast and
$.15 for every free and reduced-price lunch the federal program
funds. He noted that Alaska is one of the few states that does
not provide some sort of state contribution.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI continued to say most school districts will
receive some additional assistance through a funding formula
based on the applicable school district cost factor for each
district. Numerous studies have documented the fact that
eliminating hunger in children improves school performance,
increases school attendance, decreases school violence, and
helps to combat obesity. Dealing with these problems now, he
said, will help prevent problems that will prove to be much more
costly to society in the future.
8:08:03 AM
SENATOR OLSON joined the meeting.
8:08:16 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS asked what the $.25 [$.35] and the $.15 will
buy.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said it will be contributed to the schools
to enable schools that currently provide meals to increase the
number of meals they provide or increase the number of students
they serve, and will enable certain districts that don't
currently provide meals to get federal funds for a meals
program.
SENATOR HUGGINS asked Senator Wielechowski if this is a federal
match.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI turned the question over to his staffer,
George Ascott.
GEORGE ASCOTT, staff to Senator Wielechowski, explained that the
federal government reimburses school districts that provide free
or reduced-price meals, and the state will simply match any
reimbursement requests that are submitted to the federal
government.
SENATOR HUGGINS asked if he is correct that this will just
subsidize the current programs.
MR. ASCOTT said yes, the school districts will decide how to
spend the money.
8:10:00 AM
CO-CHAIR MEYER commented that Senator Wielechowski told him some
districts are actually using money that was intended to go to
the classrooms to pay for school meals. He asked the sponsor to
clarify how the state matching funds will be used.
8:10:41 AM
MR. ASCOTT said he believes all school districts make their own
decisions as to how they will supplement the food programs, but
all of the districts that have food programs do supplement them
in some way.
8:11:26 AM
SENATOR DAVIS opined that what the sponsor is really trying to
do with this bill is to make sure the districts that provide
breakfast and lunch don't have to dip into other funds to do it.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI confirmed that is correct.
8:12:02 AM
SENATOR OLSON asked if the bill has widespread support in the
schools among the employees who actually have to operate these
programs.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said he has not heard any complaints. He
did receive a couple of emails from people who were concerned
about increasing costs, but the vast majority of people have
been very supportive.
8:13:01 AM
SENATOR OLSON asked if studies exist to support the assertion
that school meals improve performance, increase attendance,
decrease school violence, and decrease child obesity.
MR. ASCOTT said abstracts of numerous studies have been included
in the committee members' hearing packets.
8:13:34 AM
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked how children qualify for free and reduced-
price meals.
8:14:11 AM
MR. ASCOTT said he believes that each school district has its
own application process. He was not sure of the details.
8:14:45 AM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said children who fall below 130 percent of
the federal poverty level (FPL) qualify for the free breakfast
and lunch programs; children at between 130 and 185 percent of
the FPL qualify for reduced-price meals.
8:15:13 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS commented that if 70 percent [75 percent] of
students at a school qualify for free or reduced-price meals,
the school can be classified under Title I to receive special
funding. He asked if the $50 million additional funding already
being provided to schools this year in the funding formula will
cover some of the program costs without burdening the schools.
8:16:38 AM
EDDY JEANS, Director, Division of School Finance, Department of
Education and Early Development, Juneau, Alaska, said every
school that offers a program runs at a deficit. Schools are
currently paying the deficit by transferring money from their
operating fund; districts transferred $9.1 million for that
purpose in 2008. The amount varies from district to district
depending upon whether they offer free meals or just reduced-
price meals, and whether they offer a combined breakfast and
lunch program, just breakfast, or just lunch.
He said this piece of legislation puts the program in the
foundation program, and he does not think that is the correct
place for it. He offered to work with Senator Wielechowski to
identify what section of statute would be more appropriate.
8:18:48 AM
SENATOR OLSON asked if private schools would be eligible for
this type of match.
MR. JEANS answered this bill addresses school districts
specifically.
SENATOR OLSON asked if private schools are eligible for federal
funds for meals.
MR. JEANS said he believes so.
SENATOR OLSON asked again if this legislation is only for public
schools.
MR. JEANS answered yes.
8:19:37 AM
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked if it is safe to say that the
administration supports this bill.
MR. JEANS said he did not have clearance from the governor's
office to say the administration supports the bill.
CO-CHAIR MEYER followed up on Senator Huggins' question
regarding the additional money coming to schools through the
foundation formula. He asked whether some of the costs of meals
will be taken care of by the increase in funding, so the
proposed state matching funds can free up money to use in the
classrooms.
MR. JEANS said school districts believe the money the state is
giving them through the foundation program should stay in
instruction. Districts are currently transferring $9.1 million
out of what they would call their instructional budget to
support the food service budget, and this bill would free up a
portion of that money.
8:20:58 AM
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked for details on the application process.
MR. JEANS said he thinks families have to apply once a year, but
will have to get back to the committee on that.
8:21:20 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked if there is a way for kids who are not
from low-income families to buy a breakfast or lunch; he was
concerned about the social stigma that might attach to kids who
participate in a program for low-income students only.
8:22:12 AM
MR. JEANS said provisions in the Child Nutrition Law require
schools to mask those children who are eligible for the free or
reduced-price meals, and many districts that offer breakfast or
lunch programs do accommodate students who want to purchase
meals.
8:23:03 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS said he thinks it would be valuable to know
about the federal programs as they apply to Title I nutrition
services.
MR. JEANS said Title I schools are identified based on the
percentage of the student population that is low-income. He said
that is what drives eligibility under this program as well.
SENATOR HUGGINS noted that some schools have a working
relationship with local charitable organizations to help them
provide food for underprivileged students, and encouraged the
legislature to look at ways to leverage that type of
cooperation. He also questioned how much the additional $50
million in foundation funding will impact the current $9.1
million deficit for school meals programs.
MR. JEANS said he understands Senator Huggins' question about
the additional funds through the foundation program, but school
districts will argue that the money is intended for instruction
and not to cover deficits in a federal lunch program.
8:25:49 AM
CO-CHAIR THOMAS asked how this money will be tracked.
MR. JEANS replied tracking is one reason he would like to work
with the bill sponsor to identify the proper place in statute
for this program. As additional state funding through the
foundation program the funds would be very hard to track; Food
service Programs are a special revenue fund and are tracked
separately from the general operating fund.
He stressed that the bill as written will not cover the full
deficit; districts will still have to transfer some money from
the school operating fund.
8:27:11 AM
SENATOR OLSON referred to a paragraph in the sponsor statement
which reads "To compensate for higher costs, rural schools will
receive additional assistance through a funding formula based on
the applicable School District Cost Factor for each district."
He asked if that means a proportionate amount of money will go
to rural schools, so they will not be penalized for their lower
populations.
MR. JEANS explained the geographic differential is a small
adjustment factor intended to help the rural districts offset
additional cost such as transportation of goods.
SENATOR OLSON asked if rural schools will still have to
subsidize a larger percentage than the larger schools will.
MR. JEANS said he would have to do a little more analysis before
he could substantiate that statement.
8:28:31 AM
AMY ROUSE, Director Division of Nutrition Services, Fairbanks
North Star Borough School District and member of the Alaska
School Nutrition Association, Fairbanks, Alaska, supported SB
213. She said thirty percent of their students qualify to
receive their meals at the free or reduced rate; on average,
they serve 1500 breakfasts and 5000 lunches per day. In the
month of January, they served over 27,000 breakfasts and 92,000
lunches. Twenty eight percent of the breakfasts and 66 percent
of the lunches were served to students who qualified to receive
meals at the free or reduced rate.
MS. ROUSE said school meals are nutritionally well-balanced and
provide students with a wide variety of fresh produce and whole
grain items, which is extremely important to families in a
variety of households such as food-poor, military, migrant,
those who are struggling to make ends meet, the homeless, and
children in transition.
She said many school districts expect the Nutrition Services
Department to generate enough revenue to cover expenses, but
that has become increasingly difficult; the Fairbanks North Star
School District estimates they will have a $300,000 shortfall
this year, and the amount of money available through federal
reimbursement and from the price of paid school meals does not
cover the food, non-food supplies, transportation, and labor
associated with producing them. The state matching funds in SB
213 will help them continue to provide the meals that many
children have come to expect.
8:31:30 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked if Ms. Rouse said one third of the
students pay their own way, and two thirds qualify for free or
reduced-price meals.
MS. ROUSE responded two thirds of students pay their own way and
one third do not.
SENATOR STEVENS asked how much students pay for lunch.
MS. ROUSE said students who don't qualify for free or reduced-
price meal benefits pay $3 for lunch at the elementary school
and $3.25 at the secondary school.
8:32:37 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS said the military pays Federal Impact Aid Funds
to the school districts and asked if there is a food component
to that.
MS. ROUSE answered no.
SENATOR HUGGINS asked if she knows the amount of those impact
funds.
MS. ROUSE did not know.
8:33:11 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS mentioned that another unique funding source is
federal funding for migrant labor, which applies to some
categories of fisherman; he asked if that provides much to the
school districts.
MS. ROUSE did not know.
8:33:42 AM
MICHAEL SOBOCINSKI, Psychologist, and member of the board of
directors for the Food Bank of Alaska, Eagle River, Alaska,
supported SB 213. He spoke to the committee about children and
the complexity of issues they face educationally, socially and
emotionally. He said studies have shown the benefit of nutrition
to children's success in school, and he has observed this
personally over the years.
8:35:45 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked Mr. Sobocinski if his experience supports
the link between nutrition and a reduction in violence.
MR. SOBOCINSKI said he is familiar with the research and can say
anecdotally that behavior does improve when children are not
hungry.
SENATOR HUGGINS referred to child obesity and asserted that, if
the state is going to direct money to the task of feeding
children, it should have more control over the quality of their
diet. He asked for Mr. Sobocinski's recommendations.
MR. SOBOCINSKI answered the quality of the foods that are
offered makes a big difference.
8:37:56 AM
BRENT ROCK, Director, Student Nutrition, Anchorage School
District, Anchorage, Alaska, said he has noticed a concerted
effort to improve the student nutrition programs around the
state, and the Anchorage School District has followed suit. They
worked with the community three years ago to develop a wellness
policy and discovered that, because people in low socio-economic
areas could not afford the healthier foods, they were buying
items high in fats and sugar. The district wanted to reverse
that trend by example and by providing healthy foods in the
schools. At the same time the district implemented the wellness
policy, which meant putting more money into the student
nutrition program, the economic downturn forced the costs of
food and labor up even higher. They had previously been able to
break even on the costs of running their program, but that
changed. For the first time in about 15 years, the school board
had to transfer about $1.12 million to help offset the higher
costs.
MR. ROCK stated the percentage of students in the Anchorage
School District who qualify for free or reduced-price meals has
increased over the past two or three years from 25 percent to
about 38 percent of 50,000 students, and the amount they receive
in reimbursement from the federal government does not come close
to covering those meals. Currently, he said, they do not break
even on any of their meal programs.
He said a good breakfast makes a big difference in how kids do
in school. A study done in 1995 with a large population of
students showed definitively that students who eat a good
breakfast are more alert, perform better academically, are less
likely to have to go to the nurse, and have fewer discipline
problems in school. A more recent study upheld these findings.
8:43:19 AM
MR. ROCK said their average cost to produce a lunch is between
$3.95 and $4.18 and they get $3.95 from the federal government;
the high volume of meals they provide is the only reason they
come close to breaking even. He ended by saying they really want
to provide more fresh fruits and vegetables, but if they do
that, it will cost even more per pupil than they are now
spending.
8:44:39 AM
SENATOR HUGGINS asked if the district buys any of their produce
locally.
MR. ROCK said they try to buy from farmers in the Mat Valley but
are bound by state and federal laws to buy at the lowest price,
which generally prevents them from giving a preference to local
farmers.
SENATOR HUGGINS asked what is on the menu today.
MR. ROCK did not know, but said the menu can be found on the
web.
8:46:17 AM
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked how often people have to go through the
application process.
MR. ROCK replied most people apply annually, but those
individuals who qualify under direct certification do not have
to apply. Qualified individuals include persons on public
assistance or food stamps, migrant workers, and homeless
persons. He added that the district has seen a tremendous rise
in their homeless population, which is up to 3000 students
including pre-schoolers.
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked if the breakfast program is more selective.
MR. ROCK said they lose more money on breakfast than lunch
because of the cost of producing it and the fact that they get a
smaller federal reimbursement for it. The maximum federal
reimbursement for a breakfast program for a severe-needs student
is about $2.85, and very few of their schools qualify for severe
need. He said eleven of their schools qualify for Special
Assistance (Provision 2 or 3), so the whole school eats free.
CO-CHAIR MEYER clarified that he wanted to know if all of the
students who qualify to eat breakfast at school do so.
MR. ROCK said a low percentage of them actually do eat
breakfast.
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked if some stigma attaches to kids who get
breakfast.
MR. ROCK said he does not think so, because they also have
students who buy breakfast. The issue is whether the busses can
get kids to school in time to eat, and they are working with the
superintendant of schools and the transportation department to
make that possible. He said one school allows kids to eat
breakfast in the classroom to ensure they are fed.
CO-CHAIR MEYER asked what happens to these kids in the summer.
8:49:39 AM
MR. ROCK said they have a summer feeding program. They provide
meals not only at the summer schools, but at different venues
around Anchorage and even take a truck to the Lions Park to feed
the kids.
8:50:01 AM
SUSANNAH MORGAN, Executive Director, Food Bank of Alaska,
Anchorage, Alaska, said the Food Bank of Alaska and the Alaska
Food Coalition recently conducted the 2010 hunger study, which
is part of a national study recognized by the Heritage
Foundation. They found that 74,000 individual Alaskans ask for
food assistance at a food pantry, soup kitchen or shelter every
year; of those, 42 percent have children under the age of 18 in
the household.
MS. MORGAN said the Food Bank of Alaska and its 300 partners
around the state do their best to get food assistance to the
families who need it, but they estimate that they need to
distribute 13 million pounds of food each year and are only
distributing 6 million pounds. They need help, she said, and one
of the best ways to make sure kids aren't going hungry while
they struggle to find that other 7 million pounds of food, is to
see that kids have every opportunity to get meals at school.
When the food bank realized 25 percent, or over 100 of Alaska's
schools, do not offer a school breakfast program, they saw it as
a major opportunity to feed the kids, improve school
performance, decrease discipline problems, and decrease obesity
all at the same time. She said nearly every state in the union
offers some kind of support for school breakfasts, but
acknowledged that it is not just a state responsibility. She
gave the committee her assurance that the food bank and its
partners will be there to advocate for increased reimbursements
from the federal level when the Child Nutrition Reauthorization
Act comes before Congress this year.
She said studies show when kids eat breakfast at school they are
less likely to suffer from obesity, even if they have eaten
breakfast at home. She explained that the foods provided at
school are generally healthier and are eaten earlier in the day
so they have a chance to metabolize, which means they are likely
to replace unhealthy foods a child might eat later in the day.
She said one of the best things the state can do to fight
obesity and hunger is to provide kids with a good breakfast.
MS. MORGAN disclosed that Alaska ranks 49th among states in
providing summer meals for children; for every 100 kids who get
lunch at school during the school year, only 7 get a meal during
the summer. She said the Food Bank of Alaska is working hard on
that and sponsored 32 summer food sites last year.
8:54:25 AM
PENNY VADLA, member, Kenai Peninsula Borough School District
(KPBSD), Soldotna, Alaska, supported SB 213 and urged the
legislature to support funding for school meals. She said 40
percent of the Kenai Borough School District's families qualify
for free and reduced meals, and for some students these are the
only nutritious meals they eat each day. She felt strongly that
money from the foundation formula should be used for
instructional purposes as intended, and pointed out that this
bill would reimburse the district approximately $110,000 of the
$300,000 it expects to transfer from its general funds to food
services this year.
She closed by saying that it is imperative that SB 213 pass to
ensure that no child is left hungry.
8:57:26 AM
DEAN HAMBURG, Director, School meal programs, Kenai Peninsula
Borough School District, Soldotna, Alaska, supported SB 213. He
said while the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
provides as much as $34 million per year to feed Alaska's
children, it is not enough to prevent schools from having to use
classroom funds for meal programs. He emphasized the Kenai will
provide over 900,000 school meals to hungry students this year,
and the average of $3.90 per meal in both reimbursement and cash
is simply not enough. Hunger is real for Alaska students, he
said, two in five students in Alaska qualify for free or
reduced-price meals, and their 200 homeless students depend
almost solely on those meals.
MR. HAMBURG pointed out the application process is monitored by
USDA, and reimbursements through Child Nutrition Services are
also monitored carefully, so every dollar goes to school
nutrition programs. He said, although it would be wonderful to
think the volunteer agencies and other entities could fill the
gap, those well-intending groups cannot meet the need of almost
10 million school meals a year.
The Federal government has been doing all the heavy lifting to
feed Alaska's children, he chided, and it is really time for the
state to take some responsibility for helping to provide school
meals.
9:01:14 AM
EDDIE EZELLE, Executive Director, Food Pantry of Wasilla,
Wasilla, Alaska, urged the legislature to support SB 213. He
said the Food Pantry served 3570 clients in January and 1800
during the first half of February, at approximately 1.5 meals
per client. He challenged the Senators to try skipping lunch
today and see if they are able to concentrate on the tasks at
hand.
9:02:55 AM
ALEX ANNA SALMON, President, Acting Administrator, Igiugig
Village Council, Igiugig, Alaska, said her village council is
one of the 82 active organizations of the Alaska Food Coalition
and supports SB 213. She said she is the foster mother of two
girls, both of whom suffered food insecurity before coming to
live with her, and between raising the girls and working as an
assistant at the school, she has seen the direct link between
improved nutrition and the quality of education. She said she
was in school when they implemented the first lunch program and
knows first-hand what a difference it makes. She expressed hope
that the additional money will make it possible for them to
start a breakfast program as well.
9:05:44 AM
JORDIS CLARK, School Nurse, Anchorage School District, and
Secretary for the Board of Directors of the Food Bank of Alaska,
supported SB 213. She said she holds an advanced degree in
public health and collected data for the Wellness Policy
Committee hunger study that Susannah Morgan mentioned. In answer
to Senator Huggins' question about today's menu, she said the
elementary schools are offering whole-grain Belgian waffles or
cereal, unsweetened applesauce, and a half pint of nonfat milk.
She also responded to Senator Meyer's concern about children
being identified as recipients of free or reduced meals, saying
the data is so carefully guarded that even the employee
responsible for preparing and serving those meals does not know.
9:09:20 AM
J. PATRICK LUBY, Advocacy Director, AARP, Alaska State Office,
Anchorage, Alaska, said AARP may seem to be the odd fellow at
the table, but their members are grandparents, and they are
concerned about their grandchildren. Over 8000 children are
being raised by over 5400 grandparents in Alaska, he said, and
11.5 percent of them live below the federal poverty level. He
said these people are living on the edge and need all the help
the state can give them; providing breakfast and lunch for their
grandchildren at school will help the students succeed and help
the grandparents continue to raise these kids. He urged the
legislature to support SB 213.
9:10:38 AM
HEATHER HARRIS, BHS, Program Manager, The Alaska Youth and
Parent Foundation (AYPF), and incoming President of The Alaska
Food Coalition, supported SB 213. At AYPF, she said, she works
with at-risk and homeless youth through their office at the
downtown transit center where they provide snacks and drinks,
but not a complete meal. After visiting their center and raiding
the refrigerator, clients have often said that was the only food
they had eaten all day. The 2010 hunger study done by the Alaska
Food Coalition and the Food Bank of Alaska revealed that 40
percent of families with children younger than 18 years old
skipped meals in the last year, because they did not have enough
money for food. She said a lack of adequate nutrition can affect
the cognitive behavioral development of children, and food
insecurity has been associated with grade repetition,
absenteeism, tardiness, anxiety, aggression, poor mathematics
skills, psycho-social dysfunction, and difficulty with social
interactions.
9:12:21 AM
MARY FRANCIS, Executive Director, School Administrators'
Association, supported SB 213. She said she has not received any
input yet from the school superintendants, but will be happy to
get that for the committee.
9:13:47 AM
CO-CHAIR MEYER closed public testimony and held SB 213 in
committee.
9:14:23 AM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Co-Chair Thomas adjourned the meeting at 9:14 a.m.
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